Break up those Cubbies!!! They're not nearly as "luvable" when they win.

The Chicago Cubs have become the hottest team in baseball. They demonstrated why in the first two games of their series against the Brewers at Miller Park this weekend.

First, the Cubs have gotten great pitching. Kerry Wood, Kevin Tapani, Jon Lieber, Jason Bere and Julian Tavarex have formed a solid starting rotation, and the bullpen has been strong.

Wood struck out 10 Brewers in 6.1 innings Friday night, as the Cubs nipped the Brewers 4-3.

The Cubs are hitting with some power. Sammy Sosa, Matt Stairs and Rondell White homered in a 10-4 win over the Brewers Saturday night.

It finally took another solid outing by rookie Ben Sheets, and a game-ending catch by Jeromy Burnitz, to snap the Cubs' 12-game winning streak on Sunday.

In addition to winning, the Cubs have great fans, who stick with the team win or lose. Of course, when the team wins, they get even more enthused.

They came to Miller Park in droves over the weekend and created almost even splits in the three huge crowds. Some Brewers' fans don't like that. In fact, they hit the Message Board of this web site to say so.

But, the only real response for Brewers' fans is to buy their tickets earlier so Cubs' fans can't gobble them up. You can't expect the Brewers' organization to hold tickets only for their own fans.

We won't see the Cubbies or their fans any more in Miller Park. The remaining games between the teams are in Wrigley Field. So, fans should remember and buy their tickets early for matchups with the Cubs next season.

I still believe the Cubs will come back down to earth later in the season. Many of their pitchers have histories of arm problems. Sosa is their only real proven power hitter long range. Players like Matt Stairs, Rondell White and Todd Hundley have histories of breaking down physically.

Watch for the Cubs to come back down to the pack and be part of a four-team race in the NL Central, which also will include the Brewers.

The Brewers will have the 12th pick in baseball's First-Year Playoff Draft, which starts Tuesday. Many national media are projecting they are interested in Casey Kotchman, a Florida high school first baseman.

Last year, the Brewers picked outfielder Dave Krynzel with the 11th pick. Krynzel is at High Desert, the team's Class A affiliate in the California League.

The best promotions the Brewers have are the Racing Sausages and the Sunday Major League Moments, when children are introduced with the Brewers.

Some of those kids also dress up in sausage costumes to root on their favorites in the races. They stand near the finish line and jump up and down as the "jumbo" sausages go into the final sprints. These little guys have been dubbed the "cocktail weenies" by wags in the press box, who undoubtedly have enjoyed their share of cocktails over the years.

Sheets pitched five scoreless innings to boost his streak to 14 without a run, before giving up a run to the Cubs in the sixth inning. The Brewers went on to hold the Cubs with the bullpen and record a 4-2 win.

A great moment came in the ninth when Sosa came to the plate against Milwaukee closer Curtis Leskanic with a chance to tie the score with two out. The crowd of 42,385 rose towere almost evenly split in their cheers.

Sosa took two huge swings and missed. He then barely ticked a foul on a breaking ball. The count went to 3-2, and Sosa ticked another one that catcher Henry Blanco could not hold. Sosa then lofted a long fly into the right field corner, where many in the stadium cannot see.

Jeromy Burnitz went back to the wall, reached up and caught the ball. Some said it would have cleared the wall. Others said it would have bounced off the top of it.

Before that the weekend belonged to the Cubs. The weekend crowds of around 130,000 set a Miller Park record. The biggest crowd of 43,400 on Saturday night set a single game record.

The Brewers will go over the million mark in attendance this week, when the Cincinnati Reds come to town for two games.

They then start their first wave of inter-league play, when they travel to Detroit to meet former manager Phil Garner and the Tigers.